No. 3 Purdue can take another step toward clinching the Big Ten title on Sunday when it travels to face Michigan in a conference battle on CBS. The Boilermakers (24-3, 13-3 Big Ten) have clearly established themselves as one of the top teams in college basketball, but they have proven susceptible on the road against league foes.
An Ohio State team playing under an interim coach knocked Purdue last Sunday. The Boilermakers also fell at Nebraska and Northwestern earlier this season. While the season is destined to go down as the worst for Michigan since 2007-08, hosting the Boilermakers offers a chance for the Wolverines (8-19, 3-13) to salvage something meaningful from an otherwise bleak campaign.
Adding to Michigan’s misery is this week’s news that second-leading scorer Olivier Nkahhoua will miss the rest of the season because of a wrist injury. Battling Purdue’s 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey will be even more challenging for the Wolverines without Nkamhoua in the front court. The task of containing him will fall largely to 6-10 Tarris Reed.
Edey scored 25 points on 7 of 8 shooting from the floor in Purdue’s 96-68 win over Rutgers on Thursday as the Boilermakers bounced back from the Ohio State loss with a blowout victory. The performance was emblematic of who Purdue has been for much of this season while reaching the projected No. 1 seed line in Jerry Palm’s Bracketology.
How to watch Purdue vs. Michigan live
Date: Feb. 25 | Time: 2 p.m. ET
Location: Crisler Center — Ann Arbor, Michigan
TV: CBS | Live stream: CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free)
Purdue vs. Michigan prediction, picks
Michigan is simply overmatched here as it navigates the season’s final few weeks without star forward Olivier Nkamhoua, who was lost for the season this week due to a wrist injury. Purdue slipped up on the road at Ohio State last Sunday. But that was an anomaly for one of the nation’s most dominant teams. The Boilermakers do have three Big Ten road losses this season, but they’ve also blown out teams like Maryland, Indiana and Iowa on the road. Michigan is worse than those three and won’t be able to maintain its resistance for 40 minutes. Prediction: Purdue -13
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